Furnace



(No Model.) f iff M. 1-1. STEELE.

FURNAGE.

No. 414,826. Patented Nov. 12, 1889.

@f-wwf v v ff/whim UNITED STATES PATENT EEICE.

MICHAEL II. STEELE, OF GREENSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

FURNACE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 414,826, dated November 12, 1889.

Application filed April 13, 1889. Serial No. 307,205. (No model.)

To LZZ whom t may concern.-

Be it known that I, MICHAEL H. STEELE, of Greensburg, county of lilestmoreland, State of Pennsylvania, have invented or discovered a new and useful Improvement in Furnaces; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, concise, and exact description thereof, reference `being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, in which (like letters indicating like parts)- Eigure 1 is a view, chieiiy in longitudinal section, of my improved furnace, showing the boiler directly above the furnace. Fig. 2 is a cross-section taken on the line x of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is another longitudinal section showing a mode of construction which locates the boiler farther in the rear of the furnace.

My present invention relates to the same class of smoke-consumin g furnaces for which Letters Patent of the United States No. 393,182 were granted4 to me November 20, 1888; and it consists in an improved mode of construction by which the products of combustion arising' from the fire are retarded in theirmovements toward the exit, and are retained in combustion-chambers (in whole or in part, beneath and-around the boiler) subject to the action of the flame and heat until thecombustible gases are consumed.

I have found by experience that a considerably higher degree of heat is required to consume the gases arising from the fuel than is needed to consume the smoke alone, and these gases furthermore contain valuable properties for heating purposes, so that my present mode of construction attains the additional advantage of much more effectively consuming the resulting gases, which are driven off by the first contact of the fuel with the fire, and I am thereby enabled to largely increase the heating capacity of the furnace and work an additional economy in fuel. The method of construction by which I accomplish this purpose is herein fully pointed out and explained by reference to the drawings.

I do not wish to limit myself to any particular arrangement of Vthe boiler with relation to the furnace; but I have shown in Figs. 1 and 3 what I consider the preferable mode of arrange ment.

C is the front wall of a furnace as ordina- I rily constructed, through which is the fueldoor I), having in connection therewith a shelf b, upon which the fuel is placed before being pushed into the furnace. Below this is another opening e, to allow theuse of apoker in cleaning the grate, and still further below at E are doors to admit draft. At d in Fig. 3 is shown an additional opening for draft. At the rear wall of the furnace at N are shown doors to admitof access to this end of the boiler and furnace.

, L is the grate, which is of ordinary form, and c is also an inclined grate leading from the shelfb to the main grate.

M is an ash-pit, and J is another one.

F is the first in a series of combustionchambers, arranged consecutively beneath or partly beneath and partly in front of the boiler. A is the back wall of this first chamber. Leading from the grate to the back wall` are two short walls a and a, between which and downward through a connecting-passage G, leading to the next chamber I-I, is the only meansrof exit for the products of combustion arising from the fire on the grate. These guide-walls a a form a duct for the draft, which tends to draw the iiame from the re to the point of exit, where it plays strongly upon the smoke and gases, which descend to the same point in seeking vent. This passageway G is regulated by damper K, to which is attached a counterbalanced weight.

The successive combustion chambers, through which the heat, flame, and gases arising from the fire must successively pass, are shown at H, I-I, and H. These chambers communicate with each other lby means of the openings ff, placed, preferably, at or near the iioor of the chamber. The object in so placing the openingsff, as well as in lower- IOO size to afford a good draft, but not large enough to permit the contents of the chamber to escape too easily, as it is in the retarding and retaining in the several combustionchambers of the products of combustion which are generated in the first chamber that the merit 0f my invention lies.

The precise number of chambers to be used is not material; but I have found the best results are obtained by the use of at least four consecutive chambers.

The operation of my improvement, which will be apparent, is as follows: Upon the introduction of fuel in the usual way into the furnace it of course comes in contact with the lire and fiame on the grate in the first coinbustion-chanlber F, and it is here that the principal combustion occurs. The heated air and the products of combustion naturally rises to the top of the chamber, but, there being no chance to escape here, whatever is not consumed is finally forced out by the aid of the draft through the passageway G from the lower rear of the chamber into the secondary combustion-chamber Il. In passing between the walls a a and into the passage-way G the unconsumed smoke and the consumable gases are brought into direct contact with the Haines from the fire, which is naturally most intense and concentrated most strongly at this point, and I find lin practice almost all the dense smoke here disappears and is consumed. The heated air in the secondary chamber and such gases as remain unconsumed are here subjected to substantially the same process as in the first chamber and finally escape through the opening f into the succeeding chamber H. Not even yet is the product of combustion allowed to escape into the chimney, but it is here retained for further action by the heat from the fire until further possible combus tion takes place, when in due time it makes its way into the final chamber II", from which it escapes into the boiler-flues or chimneys in the usual way. Thus the combustible material isutilized to the fullest practicable extent and all the valuable heating but, by means of the successive chambers and the retarding-Walls between them, the heated air itself is retained in contact with the surface of the boiler for a longer period than would otherwise be the case, and thus the same degree of heat is made more efficient.

Having thus described myinvention, I clai n1 herein and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United Statesl. The improved furnace consisting of the combination, with the boiler, 0f the series ot' combustion-chambers F II II II, arranged consecutively, chamber F having draft-opening G at its lower rear end and guides a a leading thereto, by means of Which the draft and the products of combustion are carried out of said chamber, the whole constructed and arranged substantially as and for the purposes specified.

2. In combination with a boiler and a series of combustion-chambers, the chamber F, having lower rear-draft opening and guide- Walls a aleading thereto, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

The combination of a boiler and a series of combustion-chambers in which is chamber F, having lower rear draft-opening G, guidewalls a a leading thereto, and a passage-way from said chamber to the succeeding chant ber, located below the level of the grate, arranged and operating substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

MICHAEL II. STEELE.

Witnesses:

O. J. OIIARA, W. L. GEORGE. 

